Natural Connection
by Queen Lucetta
Summary: AU: Where some magic and monsters exist but it somewhat resembles modern day. Vishnal becomes an employee at Lest's environmentally based company, always wanting to do his best. The efforts do not go unnoticed by his boss, and soon they find themselves bonding in and outside the workplace. Yaoi.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Wow, it's been forever since I posted anything. This was sort of requested by Kohagura. The request was essentially more Rune Factory yaoi, and I'm unable to disagree with that. Hopefully enjoy all and have a nice day!

* * *

Sweat formed on Vishnal's brow as he walked the halls of the Earthmate Co. building. His pulse raced as he tried to keep his breathing in check. His fears had been stewing since he walked through the doors, had been amplifying since he took the elevator to the top floor, and were quickly running wildly out of control as he approached the office of the boss. He had recently applied to the company, looking to take on the job of a secretary. What he didn't expect was to be called the day after he dropped off his résumé, only to be told he'd been considered to work directly as the boss's secretary. Lest, the head of the company.

Little was known about this mysterious man, as most of his public appearances were handled by his PR team. His company had the reputation of being absurdly environmentally friendly, but as far as Vishnal was concerned, that said nothing about the boss. The company was doing quite well, almost too well for an establishment without much history. There had to be a reason why this particular was doing so well despite being relatively new.

The panic increased. Vishnal's mind formulated the image of a large, ruthless man. One who would have no problem crushing the weak to achieve his goals. Maybe he was over six feet tall, and covered in muscles. Maybe he had a big club that he would whack all insubordinate employees with mercilessly.

Or a trained streak of tigers at his side to maul dissenters.

Or a cyborg arm with laser guns built in to vaporize his enemies.

He shook his head to get rid of those images. Clearly he was being ridiculous, and yet he couldn't help it. Once he made it to the middle of the hall, he paused, deadlocked. The boss's name was displayed on the door, not gold plated, just a cheap looking wooden plaque. Vishnal wondered if he should knock, or if doing so would bother the boss and get him fired before he was even hired. So he stood, panicking and fretting with little direction.

It was unclear how much time had passed. Eventually Vishnal's presence was acknowledged by another employee, who never missed a chance to mess with someone. The other approached, and very casually waved his hand in front of Vishnal's face, causing him to jolt up and almost fall over.

The employee chuckled. "I take it you're the guy looking for the secretary job?"

"Ah, um, yes!" Vishnal stammered, trying to keep an air of professionalism about him. The man before him had a smug grin on his face and was well built. He didn't seem like the ruthless boss stereotype he had concocted in his head, and he hoped that this wasn't the mysterious boss or else he'd already have made a terrible first impression.

"Well, why are you waiting around out here?"

"Um, err, well, I didn't know if Mr. Lest was busy or not, so I wondered if I should wait until he called me in or not." Vishnal wished with every ounce of his soul that the man before him wasn't Lest. He'd feel like such an idiot if he was.

"Is that so?" At that, the employee turned the knob and threw the door open. "Hey boss-man, the new recruit is here." With a sly grin, he gave Vishnal a pat on the back and was off.

Vishnal was nearly paralysed with terror, but with the door opened he couldn't just idle. He swallowed hard and entered the room, and was soon in the direct line of sight of his potential future boss. It took a second to take in the sight of him.

The boss was the most doe eyed, baby faced adult male he'd ever seen in his life. This guy couldn't possibly be the man who ran the company. Yet, that other guy referred to him as such, so he'd treat this man as such until he got information to the contrary.

"You must be Vishnal. Come in, take a seat." Vishnal did what he was told, trying to hold eye contact while simultaneously suppressing his nervousness. "You have quite the impressive résumé, I've spoken with your references. Mr. Volkanon was particularly impressed with you, by the end of our phone call he was in tears."

"Ahaha, that sounds like him."

"I see you've worked for some of my customers too, they've given you glowing reviews as well. Do you mind if I ask you some questions about your time with them?"

"Oh no, not at all." VIshnal said attentively. Very quickly his tension was fading.

As the interview continued, Vishnal relaxed and assumed his own voice. He had convinced himself to remain staunch and strictly professional in the presence of his boss. Somewhere during the flurry of casual questions and the occasional joking around, he forgot all about that and chatted as he would to an old friend. Only once Lest stood and approached him. Vishnal held his breath as the boss held out his hand. "Welcome aboard Vishnal. Can I expect you in my office on Monday?"

"Oh, yes, of course sir!" He replied humbly, taking and shaking that hand.

"Great, I'll see you then. I'll show you to your office and your work station then." Lest grinned then. "Do be careful on your way out. I have a lot of quirky employees, don't let them get to you. I'm sure they mean well."

"I see, thanks for the warning." At that Vishnal stood, and made his way to the door. "Thank you sir." With that, he left his new boss's office.

While he made his way to the elevator, he could feel a mess of emotions storming inside him. The reality of actually getting the job had not yet set in, but already he was starting to feel elated. Some of the nervousness from before came back, as he didn't yet know how his job would go. The mention of the quirky coworkers had him feeling curious, and yet it didn't worry him. Lest seemed to be a laid back guy too, though Vishnal couldn't tell if he had that demeanor all of the time. Sure he didn't seem like the type who'd have a temper, but Vishnal had yet to work with him. Only time would tell if Lest was a good boss. He couldn't keep the smile off his face as he speculated about the future, and allowed hope to take up the most space in his mind.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Two chapters today. Starting out might be a little slow going, sorry about that.

* * *

Vishnal strode through the offices, quickly dispensing the coffees and collecting necessary files. A few of the workers bid him a good morning, to which he'd nod cordially. It wasn't his job to bring everyone coffee, but he figured since he had to check on everyone's productivity anyway he might as well. Lest had appeared impressed when he'd go that little extra mile for everyone too, and praised his initiative.

He always worked with a smile, how could he not? His work wasn't physically demanding when he wasn't working many late nights in a row and paid him far beyond what he assumed he was worth. Once the initial nervousness wore off, he felt completely at ease with his coworkers and even his boss.

Earthmate Co., as the name suggested, was all about providing greener solutions to everyday problems. They dealt in all sorts of areas, fuels and foods and power options among other things. Lest appeared to be behind his mission statement of being kinder to the environment 100%. In private or among his most trusted employees, he was resolute in his dedication to a greener lifestyle and loving the earth. So far his company had garnered a good reputation. Lest himself opted to stay out of the public eye for reasons he wouldn't explain, and yet it didn't seem to have any negative effects.

Vishnal could only admire his boss's genuine devotion to his cause. On occasion he'd ask about these alternative fuels and energy, and Lest would often explain it as some kind of magic. Naturally Vishnal believed every word and never called his boss on the vagueness and mysticism.

As he distributed the coffee, Leon remarked to him, "Hey Vishnal, got a minute?" Leon's official title was 'financial advisor,' yet he never seemed to do much financial advising. Vishnal just assumed Lest favoured him and so he could get away with more than the average employee.

"Yeah, what do you need?"

"When you're done being a vending machine, tell Lest that it's about time he tended to the tomatoes. They're going to wilt if he ignores them much longer." He wore the same unreadable smile he always did, making it impossible to tell if he was joking or not.

"I'll keep that in mind." He rounded the corner, ready to head to his office.

Once he had taken care of his business on the lower floors, he made his way back into the boss's room where he'd likely spend the rest of his day. He'd gotten quite used to entering this room and didn't even bother knocking before entering.

"Morning sir! I've gotten the morning reports, Kiel in accounting is running a little late but he says he'll be done by lunch time."

"Ah, very good. Thank you Vishnal." The secretary approached and placed his boss's morning tea on his desk.

"Leon says the tomatoes are going to wilt, do you know what he means by that?"

Lest chuckled. "Don't mind him, he's just messing with you." As he said that he did appear contemplative. "I don't know, he might have a point though. I'll check on that tomorrow."

"Anything I can help with sir?"

"I'd say just review tomorrow's schedule and make a note about visiting the tomatoes. Actually, let's make a day of it. I think he might be talking about literal tomatoes this time."

"Right, I'll make a note on the schedule." Upon reviewing the next day's schedule, he found it was already surprisingly sparse, with a few notes about the tomatoes written down already. While he didn't know exactly what that meant, assuming it was some kind of code between his boss and Leon, he made a note about the tomatoes taking up the entire day. Checking ahead showed there was a pretty lax schedule in the near future.

Though, there was something important coming up so he'd ask about that. "Have you made the necessary preparations to meet with Arthur of Norad Corp.?"

"Definitely. I met with him once before and he's a very hard worker with a strong sense of ethics. I've read all the notes you gave me and have talked with Leon about how to win him over. I've also got some info on his company, not secret stuff or anything, just what's publicly available. He seems like a thorough person, if his employees and customers are to be believed." He paused, analysing Vishnal's reaction. His subordinate appeared to be hanging on every word. "You'll be there too, so take notes."

"Yes sir. I look forward to seeing you in action." He bowed his head then, and took a seat at his desk nearby. He briefly looked at his schedule for the day and got right to work.

He had his own office, but most of the time he worked near Lest just in case of a spur of the moment request, which may be a common occurrence depending on the day or various upcoming events.

There were a few brief moments of silence, as Vishnal usually stayed silent unless he was addressed or prompted. Lest cleared his throat and glanced in his secretary's direction.

"Hey Vishnal, How opposed are you to hard physical labour?" Lest asked suddenly and with a mischievous grin.

Without hesitation, he replied, "If it was what you needed me to do, I would be happy to do hard physical labour. I have done much hard labour while I trained under Mr. Volkanon. Am I being reassigned?"

"Not reassigned per se. Tomorrow I want to show you the heart of my company. I think you'll be impressed. The work will be different from what you're used to, and if it gets to be too much let me know, I'll let you go early."

"It would be an honour sir." He said with optimism. "Should I make any special preparations?"

Lest grinned. "Wear old clothes, ones that are loose and comfortable. Like shorts, or track pants if you don't want to get your knees dirty. Don't worry about looking formal, that kind of thing will only slow you down."

"Will do sir." Since this was a direct order, he'd take it seriously. Leon had told him to do absurd things in the past, so he knew now to take his instructions with a grain of salt. Lest had been pretty straight forward with him, so he wouldn't have to worry about this being some kind of prank. "If you don't mind me asking, why will I need old clothes?"

"You'll see when you get there. Let's just say it will be hard labour out in the sun, down in the dirt and through weeds and trees. I don't take just anyone with me on these outings, so I'm glad you feel honoured."

Vishnal raised an eyebrow, speculating on what that could entail. He wasn't worried, just curious, and prepared to take on whatever task Lest asked of him. "I'll do my best sir." He spent the rest of his day speculating on what physical labor he'd be performing, and was actually a little excited about it. Lest could tell, as his secretary had an ambitious look about him for the rest of the day.


	3. Chapter 3

In the morning, Vishnal put on his old work clothes in preparation for today's mystery outing. For today only, he made his way to his workplace in a taxi rather than his own car, only to meet his boss in the parking lot. He was dressed in a sleeveless shirt and shorts with many pockets, and smelled of sunscreen. With a look of mischievous delight, he waved Vishnal over to the company car.

"Great, you remembered." The boss said as Vishnal drew near. "Get in, we're in for a pretty long day. I packed us both a lunch and brought ample amounts of water."

Vishnal did what he was told, getting in on the passenger's side. "Where are we going sir?"

"You'll see when we get there. It's not far."

Around the outskirts of town, Lest parked the car on a small vacant dirt patch. As they exited the car, Vishnal looked over the vast fields before him.

"Impressive right? I planted most of this, and I tamed all of the monsters in those barns over there. Today we're going to farm, all day, until sunset."

"Literal farming sir?"

"Yes."

"I'll do it!" Vishnal said with ambitious fire in his eyes. "What would you have me do sir?"

"I'll have you water fields one through five. If you get that done you can add some fertilizer to fields one and two. And if you get that done, you can try tilling field eight. Leave any harvesting to me though." As he explained, he gestured to his tool box. Vishnal took some tools and nodded.

"Yes sir!"

Hours passed, the sun beat down. Both remained hard at work, with Vishnal only pausing a few times to stand in awe of how fast and efficient his boss was at farming. Though, he'd quickly refocus his attention and get back to work.

Not long after Lest began harvesting, he found exactly what he was looking for. More importantly, he wanted to see how his current company would react.

"Vishnal, come here."

The secretary immediately came running, looking mindful. Lest gestured to a glowing sphere, where a tomato used to be. Now would be as good a time as any to explain the power he somehow had.

"Do you see this? This is my alternative energy source. I call it rune energy. It appears sometimes when I harvest. I don't have it down to a science yet, but lately I've been finding more and more of it."

Vishnal's wide eyes and gaping jaw conveyed his childlike wonder. He wasn't even attempting to hide it. "That's amazing!"

"Yeah, I Know." The boss chuckled. "We can harvest this energy just like we harvest the crops. If you consume it without processing it, you can feel a surge of energy inside you like you wouldn't believe. Give it a try if you're feeling tired. Don't push yourself too far though, it won't help you if you've already passed out from exhaustion. Learned that from personal experience. Anyway, touch it."

"Are you sure sir? Won't that affect your bottom line?"

"This little bit won't matter much. The rush is great. Besides, I can tell you're tired."

Vishnal observed the excitement in his boss's face, and could not possibly deny him that request. His hand shook slightly as he reached out for the glowing mysterious thing where the tomatoes used to be. Upon contact, the light vanished and Vishnal felt like the core of his soul had been somehow revitalized.

"Pretty good, right?"

Despite feeling exhausted mere seconds ago, he almost shook with overflowing energy. "It's absolutely amazing!"

"Not too many people know that this is how I produce and harvest this energy. Before you it was just Leon."

The gravity of the words slowly crept into Vishnal's subconscious. Such an honour made his heart flutter and he smiled brilliantly without being able to form a response.

"Just so you know, not everyone can produce this energy either. Whenever I had someone else harvest the crops, the runes would never appear. I can have others till the soil, or occasionally water them, but it seems like the more I'm involved the more runes appear."

Vishnal stood completely motionless and silent, dumbfounded by this new information. It felt like he was now in the presence of a wizard, and a very rich wizard at that. Lest could only chuckle at his adorable reverence.

"Leon took it way differently. He pretty much just shrugged and said 'cool.'"

"Ah, right sir. It is indeed very cool, as it were."

"Hahaha, I wasn't fishing for compliments. Just saying I hope this doesn't change anything."

"If you request it sir."

Lest folded his arms, with a slight pout forming on his face. "Vishnal."

"Yes sir?"

"This isn't something I had to work on, I didn't learn how to do this, I haven't found some sort of ancient magic or learned from a master. For some reason I can just, I don't know, find this energy when I farm." He paused then, paying careful attention to the other's expression. Naturally he was hanging on every work, mystified by what he was hearing. Lest sighed. "So I don't think I deserve any kind of special adoration. I didn't work for it, you know?"

"But sir! You did work for it! Maybe you don't know exactly how it works, but you still have to till the earth and grow the crops!" His expression turned intense, his passion ignited. "That's certainly hard work! And you have a tremendous gift that rewards your hard work! You're amazing sir."

"Well, when you put it that way…" Lest concealed a blush, feeling a little silly. "Er, anyway, now that you've been introduced to the rune energy, I expect to see a lot of work out of you."

"Ah, right away sir!" With his tools ready, he set out for the fields again.

There was no denying the surge of energy running through him now, he took to the fields with more vigour than he was used to. It seemed like he was ploughing through Lest's tasks with expedient ease. With hoe in hand, he moved on to the tilling. He made it almost half way through the field before he felt his strength leave him. Suddenly his vision blurred and his legs felt weak. The world around him seemed to spin, and soon he was on the ground.

 _'Oh no, I hope my boss didn't see that. I have to get up before he notices!'_ Try as he might, he couldn't get his body to move. It seemed like every muscle in his body had been rendered unresponsive. More than anything he felt panic, not because he was close to passing out, but because he didn't want to disappoint his boss.

A few minutes passed, or was it hours? and he could hear his named being called. His arms shook as he tried to respond, but his mouth felt dry and he couldn't get the words out. If he could speak, he'd try to explain why he was currently lying on the ground and not working.

Seconds later he heard footsteps quickly approaching. He tensed up, trying to look as if he were doing something, but his attempt fell flat. His energy had left him completely and he could do nothing about it.

"Vishnal? VISHNAL?!" The secretary felt himself get propped up, and soon he was leaning against what he assumed was his boss. "Hey, are you alright?"

While his vision blurred and it felt like his very soul was leaving his body, Vishnal focussed on that voice keeping him grounded. "I'm fine… sir."

"You most certainly are not fine." He poured some water on a handkerchief and placed it on his secretary's forehead. "You didn't have to work yourself so hard. It's not shameful to take a break." At that, he handed his bottle to Vishnal, who took it and sloppily sipped it.

"I have to always, push myself, sir…" He said as his eyes focussed on the shoulder he was leaning on. Realistically, he knew that Lest was right and that working himself to exhaustion wasn't necessary or conducive to his cause, but it was in his nature to always go at any task with as much tenacity as he could muster.

"Oh Vishnal."

Vishnal closed his eyes, but tired hard not to fall asleep. Somehow he managed to stay conscious, and slowly his strength was returning. "I'm sorry sir, I was feeling great from that energy earlier, and I guess I over did it. I hope I'm not slowing you down." His tone was despondent.

"My work is done, I've placed it all in the shipment box already." He smiled, feeling nostalgic. "I remember my first run in with rune energy. It can get overwhelming. You'll learn how to handle the rush the more you experience it."

Vishnal was silent, processing his boss's words. It clicked in his mind then, what Lest was implying. "Wait, does this mean I'll be coming here again? And I'm not fired?"

Lest chuckled. "I don't know, maybe I will fire you. Collapsing on the job is definitely the mark of a lazy worker."

"Sir! I'm so sorry! I promise this won't happen again, please…"

"Relax, I'm joking." Lest said lamely, trying to quell the now out of control panic in his secretary's voice. "It wouldn't make sense to fire such a valuable member of the team. Also, like I tell Leon on nearly a daily basis, think of the lawsuits."

"I wouldn't sue you sir." Vishnal said instinctively.

"Hahaha, yeah, I know." He rubbed his unit's back then, in an attempt to motivate him. "You know, not only am I not going to fire you, I'll take you out for lunch as a thank you. Anything, anywhere you want."

"Really sir?" He didn't have to think about, he knew right away. "Down the street, Porcolene's kitchen. You have to try his curry rice, it's amazing."

"You got it." Lest replied with a somewhat sympathetic expression. "When you feel your strength come back, we can go. Or I can take you out some other time, when you're feeling better."

"I'm fine sir." He repeated, sitting up. "Actually, a good meal sounds great after a day of hard work."

Lest chuckled. "Alright. Let's get you that curry rice. Can you stand?"

Vishnal attempted to stand and Lest stood with him. He seemed a little wobbly and disoriented so Lest acted as a walking stick for him, supporting him as well as he could. Lest carried most of their weight as they made their way back to the car. Lest even opened the door and helped a totally spent Vishnal get seated.

They started driving, but it was clear that Vishnal wasn't going to last much longer. "We're going to have to take an I.O.U on that dinner. I'll take you home instead."

"But sir-"

"No 'buts.' You need rest. Also, if you need to take tomorrow off, just give me a call early tomorrow. I'll understand. What's your address?"

Vishnal wanted to protest, but found he didn't have the energy. Instead he just sighed and gave some directions to his house. The drive was quiet, mostly because Vishnal didn't have the energy to keep a conversation going. Lest parked, and ended up helping his secretary into his house. He didn't enter the house, instead he just made sure the other was safely inside before driving off. Despite his fatigue, Vishnal had no intention of skipping work.


	4. Chapter 4

Against Lest's suggestions, Vishnal insisted on coming into work the next day and showed no signs of fatigue. Aside from the light jabs Leon threw his way, he was welcomed back and lauded for his work ethic.

Buzz of activity could be felt all throughout the Earthmate company on the day of Arthur's arrival. While no one seemed particularly nervous, except Vishnal of course, there was an atmosphere of excitement and intrigue.

Lest, Leon and Vishnal had been discussing how to go about appealing to Arthur, and a very structured plan had been set. Arthur's favorite foods had been prepared, and for the finishing touch Leon had suggested they dress up a wooly just for that little extra push. Lest found it mildly absurd, and they had a very minor argument about it.

"Well, as your financial advisor, I can tell you that if you follow this advice, you'll see an increase in your finances." Leon stated lamely.

"Yeah yeah, I get it." Lest grumbled as he placed a pair of glasses on the wooly. "Still, it's such a weird combination. Whatever works I guess."

All the while, Vishnal watched and said nothing. Before him were two formally dressed men, a pickled turnip and a fluffed up wooly wearing glasses. It was such a bizarre scene, and yet Vishnal was taking mental notes and observing how everything was unfolding. Suddenly Leon handed him the pickled turnip and regarded him like he was a pawn in a much larger game.

"Bring this out when Lest gives the signal. You get to act like a butler for now."

"Ah, yes sir!" Vishnal took the tray and stood at the back.

"I'll go get him then. Put on a good show." Leon said with a grin, and then left the office.

Lest sighed. "You know, I'm not worried, but I always find these meetings tiring."

"I can sympathise sir." He probably felt all of the worry for both of them. Being this was his first substantial look at the inner workings of the company, he naturally wanted to make sure everything went smoothly.

Leon re-entered the room then, with a somewhat confused Arthur at his side. Vishnal immediately assumed his position, and Lest stood to greet his visitor. Leon did not remain present for this meeting and promptly left.

"I welcome you." Lest said with a smile. All the while Vishnal was placing some things on a coffee table, including plates and tea cups as if he were setting a table. "Come, join me."

Arthur met Lest on the couch, and Vishnal placed the tea and pickled turnip on the coffee table between them, saying nothing. He bowed, and moved out of their way. Lest gestured for Arthur to take some of the food presented to him, and he did with some mild hesitation.

"I must say, the inner workings of your company seem, unusual." Arthur stated, not with malice or condescension, but with a hint of curiosity.

"Thank you. It may be unconventional, but it works for us." Lest adopted a casual posture. "I hope everyone here has treated you well."

"From what I've seen, yes. Though, I've never seen business being conducted so- casually."

Lest chuckled. "I've always wanted to foster a comfortable work environment. Boosts morale you know?" His expression changed then, to a more sharp and attentive gaze. "Anyway, I take it you have familiarized yourself with the benefits of our energy?"

"I have been informed. If I may, could I take a look at the specifics?"

"Certainly." Lest waved Vishnal over, and he produced the documents. At that, a heavy silence filled the room as their visitor looked over the information. As far as he knew, the document contained the market research and the finances, as well some of the specifics about how his energy worked. As Arthur's eyes scanned the document, he appeared to be pleased with what he seen.

Vishnal remained silent, only doing what Lest required of him, always observing. While he was deadly afraid of saying something, or doing something that might jeopardize the deal, he was also enthralled at Lest's natural ability to draw people in.

As the meeting progressed, Vishnal noticed Arthur becoming less rigid, and more relaxed. At one point Vishnal brought in the wooly that Leon had dressed up earlier, and the atmosphere became even more casual. At that moment, Lest gained the upper hand and started mentioning numbers.

The glasses clad wooly jumped onto the couch next to Arthur. There was a long silence, with a light blush forming on Arthur's face. Lest concealed a grin, knowing he had sealed the deal. "Well, what do you think?"

"I believe I would be foolish to not accept your generous offer." Arthur said while adjusting his glasses. "Can I assume you'll allow me to meet with your research team and your technicians?"

"Certainly."

Arthur cleared his throat. "Very well. Do you mind if your mascot accompanies me?" He asked, lightly petting the wooly.

"Not at all."

"Thank you." They both stood and shook hands then. Arthur bowed his head and Lest escorted him out the door, where he was met with Leon and taken downstairs.

Lest took a seat back at his desk then. He wore a look of contemplation, and a hint of fatigue. "I'll bet Leon will continue sweet talking him while he sees the inner workings of our company. Not a bad day, if I may say so."

"You were amazing sir, Leon's also so perceptive."

"All in a day's work. You don't have to be so tense just so you know. I know this was your first time with a major client, but you looked terrified."

Vishnal's face dropped slightly then. "I'm sorry sir, I hope it didn't affect your meeting. I can't help it sir, but I think I'll be better prepared next time!"

"You sure will." Lest sighed then. "Still, I find this kind of tiring. You want to get me some coffee? Put in a hint of rune energy too, if you don't mind. Give some to Arthur too, so he can have a taste of it first hand."

"Ah, yes, right away sir!" He wasn't feeling any fatigue. Having already long recovered from his farming incident, he was willing to redeem himself in Lest's eyes. The day was still young, and if Lest was starting to slow, Vishnal was ready to work twice as hard.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I'm thinking the focus will shift more on Lest and Vishnal's interactions after this.

* * *

Days passed since Arthur's arrival. Vishnal arrived as usual, only to feel a different atmosphere from his coworkers. The energy levels were dismal, Vishnal thought little of it as he handed out the coffees as he usual did, greeting everyone only to be met with some tired nods or complete indifference. He didn't let it get to him though, and just assumed it was simple fatigue. The influx of clients had upped the workload for everyone.

When he arrived in Lest's office, he was surprised to see his boss hadn't arrived yet. _'It's not like the boss to be late, I hope he's not stuck in traffic or something.'_ Undaunted, he began his morning routine.

Lest did arrive, eventually, half an hour late. Before he took a seat at his desk, he gave a cordial nod to his secretary followed by a noncommittal "morning."

"Good morning sir. Coffee?"

"Not today, I don't use it to artificially boost my energy level in the morning. Gotta wait until I get something done." His tone fluctuated between dazed confusion and mild irritation.

Vishnal didn't bother to question this. "Very good sir. Call on me for anything."

"Thanks." His response was blunt and unenthusiastic. Seconds later, the general banter ceased and Lest became distracted by nothing in particular. Silence, and Lest's eyes wandered to everything besides his work. Sometimes he'd glance at the clock and stare vacantly at it, or his eyes would dart down to the pen in his hand. Vishnal had never seen such a low level of productivity from his boss and it worried him greatly.

"Are you feeling okay sir? You look a little pale."

"Just tired. Got a whole lot of new clients lately, and some of them are demanding things from me that I didn't expect. I suspect you're tired of all the paperwork too?"

"Not at all sir, this is what I've been trained for. Anything else I can help with?"

"I might have you tend my fields with me again, and if you're willing to stay late, you can compile some of my new data too."

"That's fine sir. I'll be happy to help. Not to pry sir, but have you read through Arthur's report? I met with him earlier, he seems rather fond of you and your company."

"Oh, is that what this is?" Lest asked, gesturing to a small stack of papers on his desk. Up until now he had hardly noticed the stack. "I see, I'll look through it. Thank you Vishnal." Lest attempted to look through the docs, yet his eyes would wander and he seemed unable to focus. After a few attempts, he gestured for his secretary to come forward.

"Vishnal, if you wouldn't mind, would you read Arthur's report for me?"

"Certainly sir." He retrieved the documents then and began reading. As Vishnal spoke, Lest appeared to be unfocussed, disoriented even. Vishnal stopped once he noticed this, falling silent to see if he'd be prompted to continue. Lest said nothing, and his eyes were completely lost.

"Sir?"

There was no response.

"Sir?"

Lest put his head down on his desk and groaned. He still didn't respond, and soon all of his motions ceased and his arms fell to his sides.

"Sir?!" Vishnal approached, and put a hand on Lest's shoulder. "Sir, can you hear me?"

Nothing.

"Sir! Say something! Please respond! Please!"

Silence.

Vishnal panicked. For a few seconds he looked around the room for something, though he wasn't even sure what, until his eyes fixed on the phone. Without hesitation he reached for it, calling EMS and trying to keep calm with little success.

"I need help, my boss is unresponsive…"

"Where are you located?"

"The top floor of Earthmate Co.. Do you need directions?"

"We've sent an ambulance there. How long has he been unresponsive?"

"It just started actually. It might be from not sleeping, or fatigue, or stress."

"Right. Is there any other information I should know about?"

"He might be eating less, I've seen him skipping meals." Vishnal felt a pang of guilt then, wondering if he could have prevented this by being a better cook.

"Very good. They'll arrive as soon as possible."

He paced the floor while he waited for the ambulance to arrive. It wasn't too long, and when they came Vishnal insisted on following them to the hospital. He wasn't under the impression that he could do anything to help, he was just far too worried to let his boss out of his sight for too long. They didn't let him in while the examination was going on and he didn't object to that too much.

Vishnal waited outside in the waiting room, fretting and panicking and generally drawing attention to himself. While he was completely oblivious to the stares and snickers of those around him, he did respond cordially and respectfully if anyone asked him for the time, of if anyone questioned why he was in such a state. He'd immediately go back to fretting once he was done addressing the questions though, providing some entertainment for the patients in the waiting room.

People came and went, eventually Vishnal was called in. Immediately he threw a barrage of incoherent questions at the nurse who called him in as they made their way to where Lest was resting. Lest was fine, he'd live. Knowing that was enough to ease his mind. He was allowed to visit Lest, which he did. It was another weight lifted off his shoulders, seeing his boss sleeping.

He was given some basic information straight from the doctor then. It was recommended that Lest take a few days off. No medicines were required. He took notes all the while but his panic was easing.

Only then did he realize that he was skipping work, and yet he didn't regret it. Though, being the ever dutiful employee he was, he took out his cell phone and called the company. The least he could do was keep everyone informed. The phone rang, and it occurred to him that he was essentially calling himself. So he hung up and dialled Leon specifically.

The ringing felt like it went on for ages. Eventually Leon picked up, just saying a casual, "hello Vishnal."

He didn't even bother asking how the other knew it was him and just proceeded, "Leon, I'm at the hospital. Lest passed out and I'm here with him."

"You should have just left him, he's usually only out for a few hours and then he's fine."

"I- But, wait, what?" So this wasn't the first time this happened, Vishnal wasn't sure if he was relieved or even more concerned.

"When you work with him for any length of time, you come to learn that this is just a thing that he does every so often. No need to worry. Weren't you out of commission the other day?"

Vishnal felt a little silly then for overreacting, but he didn't regret his decision. "Ah, sorry. Anyway, we're here and the doctor says the boss will have to take the next few days off to recover. Even if he's feeling better tomorrow, I think he really should listen to the doctor!"

"Listen to you, taking charge." Leon said with amusement. "Sure, whatever. I don't know how he's going to react to that when he wakes up, but good luck with that. I'll look after the business while you guys hang out." He hung up then without a second thought. Vishnal was left confused, and a little despondent. Hopefully Lest wouldn't be angry with him when he woke.


	6. Chapter 6

It wasn't long until Lest was conscious again, and was allowed visitors. Once Vishnal got the news, he was bolting in. His relief was obvious when he seen Lest sitting up looking mostly normal. The fatigue was still noticeable in his sagging eyes and pale face, but he could speak and focus so it was an improvement.

Lest greeted his employee, "hey Vishnal. Thanks for being here for me. I'm okay now, I think."

Vishnal said nothing, just approached and sat near his boss, smiling in relief.

"I'm free to go now. Want to take me back to work?"

Vishnal's face dropped into indignation. "Sir, I must insist that you take the rest of the day off! The doctor said so!"

Lest chuckled. "Alright, you win. Do you mind taking me home then? I'll give you directions."

"Ah, certainly sir." A plan began forming in his head, as long as he stuck around he could make sure Lest rested properly. While he didn't expect his boss to allow him inside his living quarters, he could at least make sure he made it home safely, and maybe even hang around to make sure he wasn't sneaking out.

"Good, I'll call Leon." Lest said as he stood.

"That won't be necessary, I already called. He says he'll take care of things for the day."

"Huh, you're really on top of things. Well done."

"It is my job sir."

Lest just nodded as they made their way down the halls and back to the car. Vishnal drove, occasionally glancing over to make sure his boss was conscious. He ended up fretting, and asking if he should turn on the air conditioning, or put the windows down, or adjust the seats. Lest just chuckled at the thought of Vishnal's absurd attention to detail.

As they pulled in, Lest gestured for Vishnal to come in with him. This was the first time Vishnal seen his boss's house. It was vastly smaller than he expected but that wasn't entirely surprising. There were a few fruit trees growing in the front yard and a small garden of flowers lining the path to his house, giving it a quaint and humble charm. Lest inserted his key and wobbled inside, with Vishnal following.

Immediately Vishnal started looking around as his boss's house. It seemed well kept, but Vishnal's sharp eye detected some things he could improve on. While he didn't voice this just yet to be polite, he wasn't about to let a speck of dust get by him.

Lest made it to his room and crawled into bed, not bothering to change out of his clothes. This didn't go unnoticed. "Sir, it might not be my place to say, but should you be sleeping in your suit?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, I should probably change."

"Right, I'll leave you to it." He bowed cordially and left the room, giving his boss some privacy. Lest only raised an eyebrow since he didn't care at all if the other saw him changing.

Some slight motion could be heard, Lest wasn't exactly sure what his unit was doing but he wasn't going to pry. He also didn't really feel much like changing clothes so he just stripped down to his underwear and hid under the covers. It wasn't like he was ashamed of his body, but it would feel weird to be almost naked with his co-worker present.

For a brief moment, he wondered if Vishnal possibly had some ulterior motives in coming here. Those thoughts quickly died, as Lest could think of no one who was as honest and virtuous to a fault as his secretary. It could be an act, but he didn't seem cunning enough to pull it off.

Vishnal returned then, with a cup of tea in hand, which he laid next to his boss on his nightstand. While he couldn't cook, he could at least make simple tea without it turning disastrous. "Before I leave for the day, I would be honoured to do your housework." He suddenly fell silent, and began panicking. "Not to say that your house is dirty or anything! I just feel like I can take care of the chores while you rest. That'll be less you'll have to worry about when you feel better."

"Vishnal, I can do that tomorrow. I'm not permanently enfeebled."

"I don't mind." His tone was neutral, but he seemed somewhat dismissive. "You need your rest sir! It's no good to work yourself into submission."

"You're one to talk, I seem to remember you collapsing attempting to till fields the other day."

Vishnal blushed and felt ashamed of that, but he wasn't about to let his boss make light of his condition. "That is true sir, but there is a difference between acute fatigue and chronic fatigue. You've been working too hard for too long, so you'll need more time to recover than I did."

"Are you just making stuff up?" His tone was unconvinced.

"I remembered that one thing from previous training. You know, I wanted to become a doctor, but I realised that I wouldn't be able to do that."

"Really? You seem like you could do anything."

Vishnal offered a despondent smile, flattered but also saddened. "No, I tried as hard as I could, but I could never pass a single class…"

"I'm so sorry."

"It's okay sir, I found out early on that I couldn't do it. But I am undaunted by failure! So I changed my course and became a butler, and then I got an office management degree too. That way, I could still help people in my own way." His mood abruptly changed to a more energetic, ambitious one. "That's why you should rest and leave the housework to me!"

"Alright, I'll leave it to you then."

Vishnal seemed almost giddy with delight at the prospect of doing housework, it made Lest chuckle to himself. Occasionally he'd see Vishnal buzzing around from his doorway, working diligently and with a smile.

Upon completion, he returned to his boss's room. Lest wasn't sleeping, he was doing something with his phone. Vishnal pouted slightly, worried that he was secretly working. "Done sir. Would you have me do anything else while I'm here?"

"We're off the clock now, so I won't give you orders like I usually do." After saying that, Lest paused. He could have continued, saying that Vishnal could have technically gone home, but hesitated because having him there definitely broke up the monotony. Instead something else came to mind. "It's late now, if you don't want to go home in the dark, you can stay in my guest room."

"Really sir? Thank you." He grinned at his luck, while concealing his motive of keeping his boss in line. "I'll do that. And I'll do a breakfast run for you in the morning."

"Mmm, thanks." At that he laid himself down. "Wake me up by six tomorrow okay?"

"You got it sir! Rest well!" As Lest rested, Vishnal continued cleaning the house top to bottom. He did it with all the stealth he could muster, barely making a sound. When everything shone to his standards, he very casually moved into the guest room and fell asleep as if this were a common occurrence.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Rough week, my car died after 8 years, so I had to find another.

* * *

Lest lay on the cusp of sleep with a few things on his mind. The first time he had reviewed Vishnal's resume, he had assumed he'd be a seasoned old man well versed in the corporate world. What he got wasn't a middle aged man with tonnes of experience but someone about his age who was a total greenhorn. Lest had immediately taken a liking to his new unit's attitude and was even genuinely impressed with his work ethic.

Overtime he realised he was watching Vishnal more closely, his eyes lingering on any mundane thing he might be doing. Gradually his mind would wander, fixing on what Vishnal might be thinking or what he could do as a boss to brighten his day. Even Leon had snapped him out of distraction on more than one occasion. Best of all, or perhaps worst of all, Vishnal didn't seem to suspect a thing. On the off chance he did, he never raised any objections.

By now he had accepted the truth in full. He liked Vishnal. He liked his optimism, his tenacity, his gentle voice and his honest eyes. Under normal circumstances he'd have no problem voicing any of these feelings, but in this case he was held back by his position. Lest was the boss. A relationship like that would no doubt be seen as inappropriate by the public, not that he cared. Really the only thing holding him back was his secretary's compliance. He'd probably make a move if Vishnal showed him any sort of defiance and autonomy. As it stood, Lest worried that his employee would agree to anything he asked. If he were a lesser man, maybe, he'd abuse his power and make him his lover. Though, he had enough self control and a strong enough sense of morality to not act on some of his dark desires.

Getting Vishnal to visit was mostly an innocent tactic. There was about zero chance of anything becoming of it. Still, a small part of him hoped Vishnal would be impressed with his humble abode, and, then what exactly? Even Lest wasn't sure what he expected. Just the thought of Vishnal in his house mildly raised his spirits.

He grinned to himself as he listened to the other work. It was surprisingly soothing to have someone caring for him regardless of how mild his fatigue was. Eventually the quiet sounds of activity ceased, and Lest allowed himself to succumb to sleep himself.

At 5 a.m., Vishnal was on his feet and running out to the nearest coffee shop to pick up breakfast. Before leaving, he checked in on his boss. Still sleeping, good. If he ran he could probably make it back before his boss woke.

Lest was able to sleep solidly and without interruptions, until a familiar voice stirred him awake.

"Good morning sir, the sun is up, so should we be!"

"Mmm."

"I have a bagel and some tea on the table for you. Of course, if you need more time, there's no hurry."

Lest stood then and stretched, shamelessly in his underwear. Vishnal appeared surprised, but didn't say anything further, and very gradually adverted his eyes. "Morning." Lest said finally. His body felt much better now, and a little bit of Rune energy would likely bring him back to normal. He looked much better than yesterday, his eyes had lost most of the redness and he appeared to be more focussed. "I didn't think I had any bagels here though."

"Don't worry sir, I ran out and got it. I hope it's not unsatisfactory."

"I'm sure it's fine."

"Are you well enough to stand sir? Should I bring it into you?"

"I'm not only fine, but the two of us are definitely heading back to work today."

"Are you sure you're well enough sir?"

"Sounds like someone wants to shirk the work to me." Lest said with a mischievous edge to his voice.

It had the intended effect. "I'm sorry sir, I'm not trying to shirk work!"

Lest chuckled, having predicted this but still very endeared. "Relax, I'm just messing with you. I know you of all people wouldn't shirk their responsibilities. But you should know by now that I wouldn't either."

Vishnal fell silent, as if contemplating the validity of those words. "You're right sir." He appeared conflicted. "I'm not saying you're lazy or anything."

At that Lest just rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. Anyway, I'll get dressed and meet you at the table okay?"

"Oh, yes sir." At that he left, taking a seat at the table as he waited for his boss to join him.

When Lest appeared again, he was in his usual work attire. He sat across the table and stared down the meal before him. "I'm kind of surprised you didn't make it yourself."

"It's not like I didn't want to, but I'm simply terrible in the kitchen. I thought it would be better if I left it to the professionals for today, or at least until you get better."

Lest paused, recalling what he was told last night. "So what you're saying is, you've gone out of your way to become a butler, but you still can't cook?"

"It is a sort of sore area for me sir. BUT! I haven't given up! I practice whenever I get a spare moment."

Just relax Lest, take it slow and don't be too obvious. "Well then, that certainly won't do. If you get some free time later, I could show you some things, maybe even how to make curry rice."

"Really sir? I couldn't ask for that. Your time is valuable."

"My down time is my own. I won't be able to rest thinking about how you're so close to perfection. Also, not to brag, but I know a thing or two about the culinary arts."

Vishnal blushed slightly. "Well, if it isn't too much trouble…"

"It's a date then!"

"A… date?"

"Absolutely, look forward to it!" He patted Vishnal on the back then, trying to make his comment seem innocuous. "But anyway, let's eat and get to work."


	8. Chapter 8

Lest was distracted. Again.

After having Vishnal at his house, he wondered if he could take it further. Not too much further, just the thought of hanging out after hours purely for enjoyment. How would he even go about asking something like that, and how would he be able to make it seem innocent? He was so lost in thought that he hardly noticed the other present party.

Leon, being the ever diligent prankster he was, gently nudged his boss in an attempt to snap him back to reality. Only then did Lest acknowledge that someone else was present.

"Spaced out again boss?"

"Yeah, well, you know. I've been thinking about, well, you know, stuff."

"Vishnal right?"

Lest sighed. Against his better judgement, he decided to open up. "I feel a little trapped you know? If he didn't work for me I could just ask him out. But I'm his boss, and it wouldn't be appropriate."

"Is that really what's holding you up?" Leon questioned lamely. "When have you been beholden to proper professional conduct?"

"Yeah, that's true." He took another breath as he prepared to explain himself. "It's just that, I might have said something to him, but, I don't know. He'll probably date me if I ask, but only because he's so eager to please me. I kind of feel like he'd do it out of obligation…"

Leon was already painfully aware of that fact. His expression twisted into a smile as his mind raced through the possibilities this situation could bring. In his defense, Lest really should have known better by now, so he would not be spared. "I'd say your situation is perfect. You can get him to do anything you want and just say it's part of the job. Such a naïve guy like him will obey your every command without question and with a smile."

"That's exactly the problem. I fear that he'll accept my advances whether or not he feels the same."

"So what's the problem?"

"What's the problem?!" Lest felt his throat go dry as he thought of how to articulate his objections. "That is most certainly not the way to foster a healthy relationship."

"Who needs that when you can have a love slave? And one already trained and obedient at that."

Lest fell silent, but it was unclear if he was contemplating Leon's words or not. A sudden knock on his door jolted him out of his musings and had no effect whatsoever on Leon. Lest cleared his throat and said simply, "come in."

Vishnal entered the room casually, as per usual, and noticed the two. "Good morning. I was just talking with a client, and I have some news and questions for you sir. Are you busy right now?"

Leon's grin marginally broadened as he took the lead and answered first, "We're not busy." His tone remained neutral, as if he were describing the weather. "We were just discussing Lest's sex life."

The colour drained from Vishnal's face and he cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I see. I'll um, come back later, I guess." At that he backed out slowly. The door was slowly closed, and then the sound of frantic footsteps rapidly moving away. Lest rubbed his temples and shot a glare at Leon.

He sighed and spoke, "Look, you scared him away. You knew this would happen, don't tease him like that."

"I was just stating facts. It's not my fault he doesn't like them." His grin broadened then, and he continued, "I'll bet money that you like how innocent he is."

Lest pursed his lips and tried not to react to Leon's taunting. "Regardless of what I find appealing, you can't just go around creating an uncomfortable work environment. Someone might complain about sexual harassment. Think of the lawsuits…"

"I'll bet you'll love corrupting him too, molesting him until he begs for…"

"OKAY, that's enough. Get back to whatever it was you were doing and have a nice day." He said, shooing Leon away. Although Leon wasn't moved at all by Lest's embarrassment, he did show some mercy by leaving. Lest sighed and rubbed his temples, why did he keep asking Leon for advice? Maybe in his general loneliness, he was willing to seek aid from anyone, even his sarcastic employee.

It was about ten minutes before Vishnal appeared again, only his body language suggested he was uneasy. "Um, good day sir. Did you finish your discussion from earlier?"

Lest used all of his will power to stop himself from rolling his eyes. "Don't mind Leon, he was just messing with you. But yeah, either way, we're all done with that."

A curious expression formed on Vishnal's face then. "It's really none of my concern sir, you can discuss any topic you want."

"Yeah, well, here is really not the time or place to be discussing my sex life. I may not be the most professional guy on the planet, but even I have standards."

"Right, well, I still think it is none of my concern. But if you say you weren't talking about that, I'll believe you."

Lest just shrugged, feeling a little embarrassed himself. "Well, I guess we were kind of talking about relationships, but you know, not that far in depth…"

"I see, are you seeing anyone right now sir?"

Although Lest was taken aback by the sudden question, he was a little elated and hopeful that something good could actually come of this discussion. "I'm not seeing anyone right now."

Vishnal's cheeks were lightly dusted with pink after that, and he had a look about him that implied he wanted to ask something else. No further questions came though, and he just cleared his throat and continued, "ah, very good. Anyway, about today…"

Perhaps that reaction was just a fabrication of Lest's mind, but he was almost certain that Vishnal pleased with the knowledge of Lest not seeing anyone. It could very well be wishful thinking, but for now he'd allow himself to indulge in those thoughts.

Upon finishing his report and cluing up his questions, Vishnal hesitated for a moment. "So, um, are you still willing to give me a cooking lesson after this?" His voice was low, shy, nervous almost. It made Lest feel warm.

"Of course. Look forward to it."

"…I will sir, thank you." He took his leave then, though Lest could swear he looked conflicted. While he wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not, he'd still proceed as normal.


	9. Chapter 9

After work, Lest had once again invited his associate to his house. Vishnal appeared to be a little more nervous than yesterday, Lest wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not. "If you don't need a rest, we can get started right away."

"I'm eager sir. I'll do my best!"

Lest just offered a smile and took him into the kitchen. "I've got a wide variety of ingredients, so we can try multiple angles if we need to."

"Do you have the ingredients to make curry rice?"

"I don't think we should start with curry rice, that's a little bit complicated. We'll start small and work our way up."

"Ah, good thinking sir."

"Let's try grilling some fish first, that's fairly simple but can be messed up easily if you're not paying attention. Here's a salmon and a sour drop, I'll walk you through the process."

Vishnal touched the back of his neck nervously. "I had a similar experience during my butler training sir, it never turns out well."

"Well the difference here is I'm going to be walking through it. You want to do your best to impress me right?"

"That's a very good point."

"Great, let's begin, scale the fish and place it in the pan."

"Right."

"Turn it to medium heat, drizzle some water and salt in so it doesn't burn."

"On it."

"Flip it after a few minutes so it cooks evenly."

"I see."

Lest continued walking his secretary through the process, overseeing the whole process. Everything appeared to be in order, the dish looked fine enough. Vishnal glanced at his boss, looking nervous. "Will you try it sir?"

"I would be honoured." At that, Lest grabbed a fork and took a piece. Once it touched his tongue he knew it was a mistake, but somehow he summoned up the strength to swallow. His expression alerted Vishnal immediately to how he felt about the dish, and his enthusiasm was killed.

"That bad sir?"

"It's, well, it looked okay. The taste though, I don't know how you managed to make it so off the mark while following the rules."

Vishnal pouted, looking despondent. "That bad huh."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be so blunt. But this was a pretty tragic failure."

He said nothing in response, but he looked like he might cry.

"Err, we don't have to give up though, the night is young, we could try something easier."

"If you're willing sir, I will try again!" The despondence from a moment ago had been completely erased and replaced with the fiery determination he was known for.

Several attempts later, Lest had settled on having Vishnal make onigiri. By now he was willing to concede that if Vishnal couldn't make it, they might as well give up on this hopeless cause. To his surprise, somehow, onigiri was made. It was late and Lest was more than happy to receive the meagre meal, since it was made with tenacity by the object of his affections. Despite it being a success though, Vishnal didn't seem all that proud of his accomplishment. That wasn't going to stop Lest from celebrating.

They sat at the table, Lest placed a rose in a vase and lit a candle to accentuate the perfectly made onigiri in front of them. Vishnal couldn't tell if this was done to make fun of him or not, but it seemed genuine enough. Lest took the onigiri in his hand and raised it, with a glowing smile on his face. "Congratulations on your first successful dish. I am glad I was here to witness this momentous occasion."

"I'm glad I could share it with you." Vishnal said lamely. He was still uncertain if he was being teased, but he'd appreciate his boss's praise regardless if his accomplishment warranted it or not.

"Oh yeah, before we eat, let me whip up a drink to go with it." He stood and made his way back into the kitchen. Some shuffling could be heard, then the sound of the mixer, and Lest returned. He placed a glass by his associate and returned to his seat. "Cheers!"

They took a sip, Vishnal appeared to be impressed. "What drink is this sir?"

"Prelude to love." Lest answered without thinking. Once the words left his mouth he wondered if it would create an uneasy atmosphere between them. "If you ever progress in your cooking skills, I'll show you how to make it."

"I would like that." They both fell silent after that, sipping their drink and eating their supper.

Lest tried his hardest to not gawk at his underling. Really, he was being ridiculous in acting like a kid with his first crush, but right now he didn't know how to supress his feelings. Vishnal didn't seem to notice the occasional glance being thrown his way anyway, and instead seemed intensely focussed on determining the ingredients in Lest's drink just by taste alone. Adorable for sure, and also very diligent of him.

They finished and an awkward silence fell over them. Vishnal had taken so long to complete one dish and night had fallen. It would be easy to just ask him to stay again, but he didn't know if he should be so direct. "Thanks for the food. We should do this again some time."

"Certainly. I would be honoured."

"So would I. But we are going to have to work on your technique so it's not past midnight when we finish supper."

Vishnal let out a yawn that did not go unnoticed. Lest just chuckled in response.

"Well, it's late now. You can stay if you want."

"Really sir?"

"You've done it before, it's not that big a deal right?"

"That's true, I guess I'll get ready then, thank you."

It took all of Lest's willpower to not make a joke about their date ending in a sleepover, mainly because he felt it would make Vishnal uncomfortable. He already knew Leon would be making snide comments tomorrow and was partially interested in how Vishnal would react. Instead he just kept his thoughts to himself and said a humble, "good night." Though, he didn't head to bed right away. He just entered his room and ran a hand through his hair in moderate frustration. Had Vishnal been anyone else, he just might have confessed his feelings at some point during the date. The disunity in his mind was driving him crazy, but he had yet to find a satisfying solution to the troubles he was currently facing.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Sorry about missing last week. I think I'm back on track now. To be concluded soon, I know I've been a little slow. Sorry about that.

* * *

Vishnal thought nothing of entering with his boss that morning, despite the sly looks and whispers that followed. Lest picked up on that right away and ignored it, but hoped that it wouldn't affect his secretary in any way.

Immediately Lest proceeded to his office, but Vishnal stuck around the lower levels to distribute the coffee and collect anything of importance.

The others all said a hushed good morning, as Kiel and Leon had already spread the rumours to the morning crew. The ever oblivious secretary didn't suspect a thing.

Of course Leon, completely undaunted by tact or common politeness, had to make the comments everyone else was too courteous to make. "Look at you, trying to get ahead in the company?"

"Of course, I always aim to do my best." Vishnal said with oblivious delight.

"By sleeping with the boss last night?"

"I didn't sleep with him, I slept in his guest-" It clicked in his mind then, what Leon was implying. Immediately his cheeks burned and he struggled to maintain composure. "Wait, no, it's not like that!"

"Oh sure. I bet you're the kind of guy to do anything to get ahead. That oblivious nice guy persona is all an act, isn't it?"

"No no no, you've got it all wrong!" While he fretted, Leon just grinned. By now even Vishnal knew he was falling right into his mind trap, but he didn't quite know how to avoid it. "I wouldn't sleep with the boss to move up, not really-"

"Oh, so you'd do it for free then? I'll be sure to let Lest know."

"NO! Don't tell him that!" Suddenly he began to sweat, and he was too gripped by panic to come up with a feasible way out of this.

"Yeah, I know. He wouldn't believe me if I said that anyway." Leon said, now growing bored of tormenting the excitable Vishnal. "It's all good, you should tell him yourself though. He'd be delighted to know you'd willingly offer yourself."

Vishnal fell silent, unable to think of a proper retort. He wanted to deny the allegation, but found himself hesitating.

"Anyway, get back to work." With his tone loaded with dismissal, Vishnal could tell his regularly scheduled tormenting had come to a close. Mixed feelings filled him, and he wasn't exactly sure how to articulate them, instead he just nodded cordially to Leon and took his leave. Remaining silent would certainly be the best course of action to avoid more taunting.

On his way to his office, he was passed by an annoyed looking Lest carrying a long sword. He almost brushed past his unit, but offered a passing glance. Confused, Vishnal questioned, "what are you doing with that weapon sir?"

"Going out, I heard my farm is under attack by common pests."

"Attack?"

"Exactly as it sounds, but I don't think it's serious. I'm just going to remove them by force."

"Oh, is this a common occurrence sir?"

"More common than I'd like, more annoying than anything."

"Will you be alright?"

"I think so. If I can't take them, no one will anyway."

"Are you going alone?"

"I usually do." Lest said with confidence, almost daring Vishnal to challenge him.

Vishnal didn't have time to pause and contemplate the bravery or perhaps bravado in those words, and immediately responded, "I can't let you do that, I'm coming too sir!"

"Sure, what is your weapon of choice?"

"I uh, dual blades sir."

"Some in the trunk, get 'em when we get there. Let's go."

"Right."

This would be the first time Vishnal had ever used his combat training in any meaningful way. Still, he was confident in his abilities, and wanted to make a good impression as well as protect his boss from harm. It would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous, but he wouldn't let anyone know that.

Little was said as they drove. Lest went over the possible threats they were up against, mostly insects that ate vegetables or the unfortunate palm cat that just happened to wander there. Sometimes magic based monsters would appear to take his rune energy, and those were usually the worst since the damage they do can be intangible. Lest concluded the trip by telling Vishnal to fall back if he was hurt, and that he'd take care of any injuries later on.

They arrived and Lest quickly assessed what they were up against. His farm had been overrun with beetles and fairies. Lest sighed, but jumped in without hesitation. "Vishnal, go for the beetles, they're less tricky than the fairies."

"Yes sir."

Lest took off, coming at the fairies with precise strikes. Vishnal took his weapon and attempted to do what he was told.

Vishnal didn't have much time to pay attention to what Lest was doing once he entered the battlefield. It wasn't an unwinnable fight, but he did sustain some minor injuries. Nothing he couldn't patch up later, however. As the fight progressed, he began to notice how they moved and how best to counter their stabs.

He'd almost finished them off when he sensed something odd drawing near.

Somehow a fairy had made its way over to him, and before he noticed, a blast of light energy had been fired at him. He took a direct hit. Pain spread throughout his body for only the briefest of moment before it absolved completely in an instant. Behind him, a marginally worried Lest appeared to be cloaked in a green light.

"Hey, stand down a sec, okay? I got this."

Wide eyed Vishnal did what he was told and immediately ran behind Lest on his now completely responsive legs. He didn't even bother trying to make sense of what just happened.

Now protecting Vishnal, he stood his ground. Despite fighting these monsters before, he now had to think of the welfare of his inexperienced secretary. His position remained stationary as he summoned up magic to take out the threats instead. His secretary had closed his eyes, but he could still hear what was going on.

There were a few impacts that could be felt even if Vishnal wasn't taking the attacks directly. Still, Lest didn't flinch for a second. A few gusts later, and the surrounding atmosphere fell silent, only the sound of the breeze permeating the stillness.

There remained no danger, but Vishnal had his eyes were still shut. "It's all good now, the coast is clear."

Slowly Vishnal opened his eyes, the coast was indeed clear. No trace of the invading monsters remained. "Wow sir, simply amazing." Suddenly a flurry of questions formed in his head, but he was too dumbfounded and confused by what just happened to vocalize any of them. All he managed to say was, "somehow I made it out okay, even after taking a direct attack…"

"You're fine, you didn't think I'd let anything happen to you, right?

"Of course not." He may have been rattled, but he was still able to tap into his more lighthearted side, "think of the lawsuits right?"

Lest smiled bitterly. "Exactly. But aside from that, I still wouldn't let anything happen to you, or anyone important to me. Lawsuits are just that little extra push to keep everyone in good shape haha."

"I see." He fell silent, as he made sense of everything, and coming to terms with Lest's ability to use magic. "So you can use magic, sir…"

"Yeah, it's a side effect of consuming rune energy. Pretty good right? We're working on a way to use it in such a way to cure illnesses. So far we can heal physical damage, but that's it." At that, he hugged Vishnal, smiling. "You felt it right?"

"I did, thank you."

"If you feel a little strange, I apologise. Healing IS a form of love magic, so you might be feeling some odd effects. I'm not really all that proficient with it yet."

"Love magic, huh." This didn't seem to bother him at all. Instead, he felt oddly flattered. "Does that make people fall in love?" It sounded like a strange and obvious question, even to his own ears. Perhaps that was one of the odd effects Lest warned of, but he didn't think his boss would do something so questionable to him.

"Well, actually, no. My research team classified it as such, but I'm not sure why. We're just working on the curative properties of love magic at the moment. I'm not ordering any research on that subject either. Could you imagine if someone like Leon had access to magic like that?"

For some reason, Vishnal became focussed on the fact that love magic had been used on him. Factoring into what Leon said earlier, he started suspecting that maybe there was some truth in that taunting. Or maybe it was just wishful thinking. He ignored the question about Leon completely, hugging his boss and contemplating if he should say something or not. Later on he'd try to make sense of the taunting and the information he was just given. "Well sir, I'm glad that no one was hurt."

"Well, technically you were. Magic can feel strange if you're hit with it, and not used it." He released his secretary then, looking him over and assessing the damage. "I'll take care of your suit, it's definitely shredded beyond repair. Not used to taking rigid horns huh? Next time, if you choose to come, I expect you'll be better prepared." His tone fluctuated slightly, it was unclear if he was joking or not.

"You're right sir, thank you for showing me how far my training has slipped! I will redouble my efforts!"

"Somehow I knew you'd say that. I also know that if I say you don't have to come with me next time, you're going to reject that suggestion outright." He smiled, apparently not bothered by the battle at all. "But you know? I think that's what I like best about you."

"I uh, thank you sir." It was unclear if Lest was mocking him or not, but he'd take it as the truth, feeling lighthearted and flattered.

"Anyway, now that we're here, we might as well assess the damage and tend to the crops. I know that's not what you expected to do today, sorry about that."

"I've come to expect the unexpected sir." Vishnal replied with a warm smile. At the very least, he could spend the rest of the day with just his boss, and he could at least make use of his now very unprofessional shredded mess of a suit he was wearing.


	11. Chapter 11

Vishnal paced the floor, fretting. Thoughts raced through his mind as he hung around the research department, occasionally looking over the notes and occasionally bothering the other employees with essentially the same questions over and over. Since getting healed by Lest, he had become almost obsessed with the idea of 'love magic' and dedicated nearly every spare second he had to researching it. He wasn't part of the research team, and didn't have access to the inner workings of the facility, but he did read all of the notes when he wasn't being called to do other things.

What he really wanted to know was if love magic actually influenced someone's romantic feelings. Lest had already told him that love magic doesn't actually make people fall in love, but somehow Vishnal couldn't accept that. It was only recently that he started to realise he felt a strong attraction to his boss, and love magic seemed to be the most reasonable explanation he could come up with was he was under a spell.

 _'That has to be the reason. I didn't have feelings like this for him before.'_

Since that day, he had seriously been evaluating his attraction to his boss. He was fully convinced that the attraction he felt was sudden, and that magic had to have been the cause. If magic wasn't the cause, he'd have to come to terms with the truth.

 _'Maybe it was because he was so dashing using magic and being all heroic._ '

The more he thought about it, the more he realised his attraction went back further than that. He couldn't deny that his boss's gentle face was highly appealing, and that he was always impressed by his work ethic and considerate nature. By now he was starting to understand that he was only using the love magic idea as an excuse to cover up his true feelings.

It was all so clear to him at that moment, and he carefully stored the files he was reading and left the research department.

 _'I can't go on working for him now, there's only one thing I can do.'_

Sweat formed as he made his way to his usual location, Lest's office. His boss had no idea what he was planning when he entered, and proceeded as normal.

"Ah Vishnal, would you check the shipping schedule for me?"

"Certainly sir, but before that I have something important to declare."

"Alright, what is it?"

"Sir, I must put in my resignation notice."

Lest stared, dumbfounded at what he just heard. At first he had to convince himself that what he had just heard had actually come from Vishnal, and that was a surprisingly difficult task. It would have been more feasible if Leon jumped in and said that this was actually a robot made to look and sound like Vishnal who he had programmed to say absurd things. After he had rationalized that it was in fact Vishnal who said he was resigning, Lest was left contemplating how they got there and if this was another of Leon's pranks. All attempts to form an articulate his thoughts failed, and all he could say in response was, "What?"

"I believe that it would be inappropriate to continue working for you, after what I found out today. I'm sorry sir, but the nature of this relationship should not be present in a professional setting."

At that, Lest had assumed Leon had told Vishnal about his affections for him, and sighed. "I'm sorry, but I understand." It took all of his willpower to not ask how he found out. "I won't pressure you to stay, but I can assure you that the atmosphere will remain professional. I won't do anything differently, and if my presence makes you uncomfortable, you can tell me." He didn't want to sound desperate, and mostly succeeded. This was all so sudden that he wasn't properly prepared.

"It's not that your presence makes me uncomfortable, well, not really." Vishnal cleared his throat then, in a meek attempt to stall for time. "But sir, you've had to have heard the rumours going around. And if you haven't, the others are saying such slanderous things about you! I don't want to be the cause of that anymore. I know you're not the type of person to give preferential treatment to anyone for reasons unrelated to work. Now that I've finally figured out my own feelings, I can't have that, and I can't continue working for you knowing that I'm the cause of these rumours."

"Err, really? Is that all?" It was apparent that Lest didn't care about that. He was already well aware of the gossip, but if Vishnal didn't care, neither did he.

"Uhm. I don't want to give credence to the rumours. I mean, they may have figured it out before I did, but now that I understand my feelings, I must not be an accessory to such gossip, sir!"

"Riiight." Lest tapped a pen on his desk as he thought about how to approach the topic. "These feelings of yours, I take it they alone are fuelling the rumours?"

"I would think so, sir. So I must resign, it isn't proper to have these feelings for my boss…"

"Hey you know, if you're okay with it, I'm okay with it." He stood then, and made his way over to the other side of the desk. Vishnal watched with wide eyes as Lest took his hand. "I don't know if Leon told you this or not, but I've kind of had an eye on you for a while. I guess I, like you, thought it was an inappropriate relationship to pursue. But I'm the boss so I can't fire myself."

Vishnal held his breath as Lest brought his hand to his mouth.

"I found myself liking you for a while now, and I'll keep you around as my secretary and my lover, if you're okay with it."

"Wha, wait, are you mocking me sir?" The ever flustered Vishnal couldn't fathom what he just heard being the truth. He may have been used to being teased, but not by Lest.

"No, I'm being completely serious. I really love you!"

"I see." He swallowed and appeared to be contemplative. "I will accept your feelings, and return them with my own, sir."

"That's good news. You're going to do it from your desk too, right?"

"I uh, yes, of course." With the tensions rapidly decreasing, Vishnal was left feeling slightly tired. "This is, not exactly how I expected today's events to unfold."

"Join the club. Before just now I fully expected to go on admiring you silently. If we didn't have so much to get through, I'd give everyone the day off tomorrow to celebrate." At that he released Vishnal's hand and moved back to his desk. "Well, anyway, I think we should talk further, after work. You're aware of our packed schedule yeah?"

"Of course! I'll get right on calling our clients and making arrangements!"

Lest only offered a few glances at his ever diligent assistant. Everything seemed normal, as it was before their unconventional confession. Perhaps it was better that way, or perhaps any change in their relationship would develop in the coming days. Either way, it would be interesting for Lest to see how such a relationship would unfold coupled with workplace stress and the judgemental eyes of his other employees.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Wow, how long has it been? I apologize for that, but I'm back! Sort of, I think. I expect there will be two more chapters, and I don't think there will be such a long gap. I have the internet now, so as long as it doesn't glitch out, I should be able to conclude soon. Again, sorry about the gap. Sometimes things happen which I can't prepare for and didn't see coming.

* * *

In the days that followed, both Vishnal and Lest had to come to terms with their hasty and haphazard confession. The dynamic between them was slow to change, subtly the two added a few more romantic moments to their work day, mostly in Lest's office but also occasionally in the staff room or in the secretary's room. At first they would only exchange slightly romantic words and phrases, gradually working up to calling each other by cute pet names that they chose. Lest was beginning to get more bold and considered upping his game in the future, as long as no one was looking. On occasion, even Vishnal would take the initiative, and surprise Lest with a kiss or a shockingly out of place potentially lewd comment (Lest was still unaware if Vishnal knew what he was saying in these cases, but nevertheless found amusement whenever he heard something indecent coming from his usually proper secretary).

Rumours soon began to run rampant around the offices, which in turn made Vishnal a little shy and on edge. Being the ever diligent boyfriend he was, he went around to everyone in the breakroom and let them know the truth.

"That's right, I'm dating Vishnal. Don't worry though, I'm not playing favorites and I'm not giving him undue benefits or raises because of it. I'm just telling you all for disclosure, not to brag of course!" His tone remained upbeat and almost humorous. A few of his employees were actually disappointed that their gossip sessions had been neutered by such blunt honesty.

With the scandal taken out of their not secret anymore relationship, the rumours and gossip almost immediately ceased. Lest hadn't minded the rumours to begin with, but at least Vishnal was more at ease.

The only one who kept up the playful jabs was Leon, to the surprise of no one. Since it was Leon though, neither Vishnal nor Lest took much offense to his taunting. In a way, it made the situation all the more normal, considering silence from Leon would just be weird and out of character for him. Lest would even snipe back on occasion, accusing Leon of being jealous or other playful nonsense that he didn't mean.

While Vishnal opted to stay out of Leon's way, it did nothing to deter his work ethic. Every day was another chance to prove his devotion to Lest by working hard like he always did.

As always he spent his time buzzing around and making sure everything was in order. Despite his words to the contrary, he did attempt to weasel into Lest's quarters whenever he could. He found himself going there for the most mundane of reasons, but neither of them cared about that. It didn't disrupt his output, so it was always a welcomed change of pace.

Vishnal once again found himself in Lest's presence, for work related reasons of course. "Sir, where might I find the assessment forms?"

"Oh, they should be in the book room with the other forms, check with Kiel if you can't find them, he usually has a handle on where everything is. I think anyway, it's been a while since I drilled him on his knowledge of where stuff is."

"Right, I'll have a look then. Thank you."

"Did you attempt to tidy the records room lately? I know you've been keeping it in good working order for the last few months, I think."

Vishnal hesitated, but then answered, "I haven't lately sir, I apologise for my laziness! In the future I'll keep abreast of all tasks expected of me!"

"Relax, I never told you to organize it. That whole room needs an overhaul, it might be too much for just one person. I don't think it's been reorganised since I founded the company. Actually, I think there's still some stuff in there from the very first days of operation. Probably why it's impossible to find anything in there."

"Should I begin tidying that room sir? I can take on the task by myself as to not distract the others from their very important positions! I'm willing to stay after hours if I can't fit it into my current schedule."

Lest couldn't help but chuckle. This kind of attitude endeared him to Vishnal more every day. "Vishnal, you should know by now that I'm not about to overwork my hardest working employee. Besides, if you're working here after hours, you won't be home in my arms later on."

"Er, I, that is-" He stammered in response, feeling his cheeks darken. "Is that a request sir?"

"It is, I request that we go on a date later today, if you're not busy. And just so you know, I do know your schedule, so you can't tell me you have to work." His eyes narrowed and his lips curled into a sly smile.

"I um, I would be honoured."

"Good to hear. Anyway, I guess I won't keep you."

"Right, I'll get back to work, sir…" He turned to leave, though appeared hesitant. A light blush dusted his cheeks.

Now that his mischievous spirit had been ignited, Lest decided he couldn't leave his secretary alone. "Hey Vishnal, come here."

The secretary came over, as instructed. Lest pulled him onto his lap then. There was a look of adoration in his eye that made Vishnal blush, but also adopt a goofy grin. Lest tilted his head up, the height different made it difficult to maneuver while his taller lover was on his lap. "Kiss me." He said, leaning back with a sly smile.

"Yes sir." Vishnal leaned in then, and took his boss's lips. Lest kissed him back lazily, pleased at how natural these actions seemed.

Just then the door flew open to reveal Leon, looking unusually serious.

"Hey you two! Stop canoodling and get back to work!"

"Who's the boss here?" Lest said lamely, although his lover jolted to his feet and continued whatever he was attempting to do beforehand. "If I feel like canoodling in my office I'll canoodle in my office. You can't stop me and I can't fire myself."

"Maybe you should." Leon said, rolling his eyes.

"Check the numbers, we're not falling behind. Maybe you should get back to work."

"I am working, trying to get you to do your job!" Leon growled.

"Wow, something must be up, you're not usually this serious." Lest pointed out, finally deciding to take Leon's prodding seriously. Vishnal was already long gone, so he leaned on his desk attentively and stared Leon down. "So is there something that needs my attention right now?"

Leon's stern expression immediately softened and returned to his usual grin. "Not really, just wanted to mess with that excitable secretary of yours."

"I should have known." Lest wasn't mad, as he too found Vishnal's innocent reactions endearing. Leon very casually took his leave and Lest sat back knowing he'd be meeting with his lover later.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Finally finished haha. Warning, there is sort of an implied lemon here. Nothing too graphic or anything. Thanks for the patience!

* * *

The two had gone back to Lest's place after work. Lest could sense an unusual energy in Vishnal on the car ride and all during supper. He had been smiling, and seemed open and relaxed. Their conversations meandered in no particular direction and at some point they ended up on the couch. Lest suggested Vishnal pick something to watch, but that didn't happen. Instead, Vishnal turned his attention squarely on the boss.

"Sir, I'm delighted that you've invited me here. " It certainly wasn't the first time he'd been in his boss's house, but his mood seemed completely different. His expression turned serious, and he stared Lest down intensely. "We are alone, and um-" He swallowed, as if preparing himself, "since there's no one to interrupt, I would like to, um, perhaps go- all the way with you sir." While he was slightly hesitant, he had a firm expression on his face.

Lest regarded him with such an intrigued expression. "Well, I'd love to." He looked his secretary up and down, but it didn't seem like he was forcing himself. Actually, his face lit up with pure delight.

"Thank you sir!"

"You don't have to thank me." He suppressed a chuckle, trying to think of a way to make this seem less formal. "I want you too."

"Sir." He seemed so touched and elated.

"Well then, shall we?"

"Um, yes!"

At that, Lest led him into his room. Somehow he expected things to deepen, but he wasn't sure why he had that hunch. Either way, he took the lead and sat on his bed, gesturing with a warm smile for the other to come.

Lest had expected his usually bashful secretary to act guarded and shy, but such an expectation was defied completely. He approached his inviting boss with a warm, almost giddy smile. Lest leaned back and let himself be joined on his bed.

Vishnal hesitated then, but gradually brought his hand to his boss's still clothed chest. "I love you, L-Lest." His voice only wavered slightly, but he didn't appear nervous. "Can I?" His eyes met Lest's as he gestured to the suit covering his boss's body.

"Go ahead." Lest replied in a low voice.

No surprise, Vishnal expertly undressed his boss in an almost matter of fact manner. He removed the tie with a laser like precision, as if he were trying to set a record. Lest didn't protest in the slightest when the dutiful butler reached for his shirt.

The departure from their usual dynamic excited Lest to no end. Sure he loved his somewhat shy and overemotional secretary, but he was very quickly learning to love this more forward and direct Vishnal too. Lest leaned back, his eyes wandered all over his companion's nearly bare body. Vishnal narrowed his eyes in amusement as he realised he had seized the button of his boss's shirt without permission. "Mind if I-?"

"Please." At that he suppressed a chuckle, think about how irresistibly cute it was when his lover acted like a butler.

Vishnal's skilled fingers made quick work of Lest's suit, leaving his chest bare. Vishnal turned his attention to the still buttoned pants and hesitated. Lest eyed him in a way that dared him to proceed. "What's wrong? Slacking on the job?"

"Of course not sir, I am here to serve." There was a hint of playfulness in his tone even though his words were completely serious. Without warning, Lest was pushed down. The button was seized and Vishnal expertly undid the button with a focussed look about him, but jolted up with a surprised yelp when he realised his boss wasn't wearing underwear.

Lest chucked with mischievous delight. "Did I surprise you?"

"you did sir, but in the best possible way." His voice held confidence, which was unexpected. "Do you mind if I touch you?"

"I'd have to fire you if you didn't." Lest joked, then immediately regretted saying that. "I'm kidding, you don't have to if you don't want to."

"Thank you, I'll do my best to make you feel good." The ever efficient butler wasted no time in grabbing his boss's semi-hard shaft and stroking it diligently with a look of concentration.

It quickly became clear that Vishnal had little to no experience doing this. Lest suppressed a chuckle, as not to offend. A small sigh escaped him as he watched his innocent lover try his hardest to please him. It was the thought that counts, right?

"Hold on, wait." Lest said while gripping his lover's hair. "Vishnal."

He looked up into his boss's eyes, slightly worried. "Sir?"

"It's just, I feel kind of selfish, getting it all and not giving anything back." He chuckled then. "Are you feeling left out?"

"Well…"

"Let me give you something too." Lest expected his lover to protest and claim that he was fine with how things were, but Vishnal surprised him with a delighted and eager smile.

"Yes please sir."

"Alright, well," suddenly Lest felt a little shy, but he wasn't about to take back what he just suggested, "in that case, just relax."

Vishnal just nodded. Lest pushed him down then with shaking hands and an unsure smile. It wasn't like he had a wealth of experience either. He'd just have to trust his partner and hope he could do it right.

Together they felt out the situation, and Lest proceeded as gently as he could. Lest graded himself as 'needs work.' While Vishnal raised no objections, he knew he could do better, and practice makes perfect anyway.

"I think I could use some training, what about you?" Lest asked jokingly.

"I um, I believe we should both practice. We should practice as much as possible so we can perfect our technique!"

"Haha, alright. I look forward to training with you."

An air of tranquility seemed to surround them as they came down from their high. Lest immediately coiled around Vishnal, gripping him tightly with his arms and legs. Vishnal wrapped his arms around his boss with a giddy smile plastered on his face. A slight giggle escaped him. "Sir, if I may, you have a very peaceful expression right now."

"Well, that's because I'm feeling peaceful I guess."

"I'm glad."

"I don't know how, but I'm almost certain that everyone at the office is going to know about this somehow. Do you want to take the day off?"

"Sir, I must object. Regardless of what they think, I will not shirk my duties!"

"Haha, no need to get fired up. I thought you'd say that anyway."

"Hmm, yeah."

Neither of them said anything after that. Vishnal didn't even offer to clean up. Instead they opted to drift off listening to the sound of the other's breathing.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: The end, sorry it took so long, among other things haha.

* * *

In the morning, Lest awoke in a vacant bed to the scent of bagels and coffee. It seemed odd that his lover had taken the initiative to cook, but at the same time he was deeply flattered. He got out of bed shamelessly in his underwear and made his way to the kitchen.

Vishnal was there, setting the table in the pristine fashion one would expect from a diligent butler. The take out bags alerted Lest that his lover didn't actually do any cooking, but that was not something he was about to question. Instead he approached and took a seat quietly.

"Good morning sir, I hope you slept well." Vishnal said, regarding him with adoration. "I got us some breakfast, I hope you don't mind that it's store bought."

Lest suppressed the urge to make a snippy comment about his lover's cooking and just uttered a thank you. The two ate in silence, but the atmosphere didn't appear awkward. Instead it seemed comfortable, natural even. Lest stared off, not looking at anything while he allowed himself to get lost in thought.

"Vishnal, um, you're not hurt are you?" The boss said suddenly.

"Not at all sir. I'm in top form today."

"Oh, that's good." At that he cleaned his space and gestured for Vishnal to do the same. "Well, let's go. I hope you'll be ready for Leon's taunting."

"I've gotten accustomed to it sir. Don't worry about me."

"Right then, shall we?"

For some reason, Vishnal offered his hand, and the two moved proceeded to the car. There didn't appear to be any uncertainty among them, Lest had absolutely no reservations about being seen with Vishnal outside.

When they arrived at work, they assumed their positions as they normally would, not acting any differently than usual. Vishnal distributed the coffee and checked in with the current main process and Lest went directly to his office. Vishnal soon joined his boss.

Apparently Leon hadn't arrived yet, and Vishnal wasn't about to complain about that. It wasn't long until he made an appearance.

"Morning Leon."

"Why don't we call it 'bad night' instead?" He said, then paused slightly while he collected some things from Vishnal. He turned toward the door then, not focussing on either present party while he said casually, "by the way, how was your night?"

"Fine." Lest said nonchalantly. Vishnal watched with intrigue.

"Fine huh, only fine?"

"What are you getting at?"

"I thought your first time would have been slightly more memorable." He said with an unreadable expression.

Vishnal tensed, but Lest wasn't about to take the bait. "Why don't you be frank and just ask what you want? Stop being cryptic."

"I didn't want to bother bringing it up, it's not that big a deal right?" Of course his eyes narrowed slyly after saying that. "Well, it would be pretty much nothing for normal people, but for you two-"

"Alright, stifle it Leon." Lest said dismissively. "We're not making this into an event. Get back to work."

Leon did leave, but with a smirk. As of now Lest couldn't tell if he was planning something, or just acting like he was planning something. Maybe he was planning on making something up and telling Kiel.

A brief moment of silence followed, Vishnal spoke first, "you handled that well sir."

"Actually, I think you handled that spectacularly. You're becoming immune to Leon's jokes and taunting. That's not an easy feat, there are people who have been here since day one and still haven't become fully accustomed to his antics."

"Well thank you sir, I will adapt to any situation for you."

"Hahaha, I know you will." He tapped a pen on his desk, apparently pleased. "I look forward to seeing how you adapt in the future."

"Can do sir."

The two resumed their usual positions, with glee. Lest occasionally glanced over to his ever diligent secretary and felt like he was truly blessed to have met him. Their future was looking bright and Lest knew he'd be in for many years of prosperity with his lover.


End file.
